Forever and always
by Queen Nushy
Summary: After leaving home to start a new life in a small town called Bon Temps, a young, unusual woman catches the attention of a certain Viking vampire...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One.**

 _ **AN:**_ __ _This story is a revamp of the previous few chapters I posted. If you've read my work before, I'd advise you to read it over since I've added some things. Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. Please, drop a review. They motivate me to write! A million times thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows. You guys are the best!_

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _Sadly, I don't own TrueBlood, but I do own my OC's._

 **XXX**

 _ **DING...**_

 _"Ladies and gentlemen, the Captain has turned on the Fasten Seat Belt_ _sign. If you haven't already done so, please stow your_ _ **carry-on luggage**_ _underneath the seat in front of you or in an overhead bin. Please take your seat and fasten your seat belt. If you have any questions about our flight today, please don't hesitate to ask one of our flight attendants. Thank you all."_

 _ **DING...**_

She walks past the seats on the airplane in search of her own. When she finally finds it, she does as instructed and places her carry-on luggage in one of the over-head bins, taking her seat and buckling up. Once settled in, she takes a deep breath, trying to calm some of her raging nerves and exhales slowly. She reaches in her purse and grabs hold of her IPhone, searching through the contacts until finding the right one. _**"MOM"**_

 _ **"Hi mom. I'm boarded now. I'm really sorry it had to happen like this, but I need to do this for myself. I love you so much. I promise I will take care and talk to you regularly. Send my love to everyone."**_ She presses send and quickly switches off her phone just to avoid reading her mother's instant yet disappointing reply.

Here she is... A twenty-year-old college drop-out on her way to a different continent.

Leaving home was always the plan. Since being a little girl, River dreamt of moving to The States. She just never imagined it to happen quite like this.

Her parents had big plans for her. They sent her to the fanciest schools, hoping it will increase her chances of success in society. They wanted her to obtain the status of a doctor, make lots of money and live comfortably for the rest of her life, with no worry about what tomorrow might bring.

River knew her parents only wanted the best for her, but sometimes they became too overbearing with their constant nagging and high expectations of her. Her father would always bring up the topic about studies, telling her, and everyone else, how his daughter was going to become a successful doctor.

 _"Doctor River Rose Conley...Doesn't it have a nice ring to it?"_ He would ask, his face beaming with pride, his aura so bright.

River always feared of disappointing her parents. The look of being let down often crept onto their faces when it came to her older brother, Ben. How their auras would drastically take a turn to something dark and sad. They had big hopes for him as well, but he made it very clear from the start that he'd be following his own path, living his life as he sees fit, even if it was against their strict parents' morals. That's when she promised herself that she would do everything in her power to refrain from seeing that look on their faces when it came to herself. She would keep them happy, even if it meant she'd be the opposite, slowly dying away inside.

Little did she know that she could only take a couple years of this soul torturing life. School stressed her out way too much and she found studying to be more of a chore than anything else, especially since it was studying for something she didn't give a damn about. On top of that, being the weird kid on the block didn't help matters much either. But, give her a guitar in her hand and she was the happiest person on earth. She'd strum and sing her troubles away.

She tried to subtly bring up the fact that she'd like to transfer to a different school, across the globe and change her field in school to art, music, maybe a little bit of drama, and her folks nearly had a heart attack. The practically jumped down her throat asking her -no- _demanding_ why she would waste her life on something as simple as that.

River never had a lot of friends growing up, but luckily she had met a friend online a couple years prior to all this who she could vent to daily. They became more like sisters than best friends. Chelsea tried her best to support her friend throughout her stressful days. Every night when they had their call, Chelsea would try to persuade River into moving to where she was. As far as River knew, Chelsea lived in a little town she couldn't recall the name of, somewhere in Louisiana. River still vividly remembers how the call went, the call that made her change her mind and put her happiness first.

River was rambling on about how she wished she could move and pursue her dreams before Chelsea interjected and gave River the option of moving in with her.

"Chelsea, that's a really kind offer, but I highly doubt moving to Bontomps would make me a famous singer." River half jokes.

"First of all, it's Bon Temps! Secondly, wasn't your first goal to move to The States?"

With a defeated sigh, River answered. "Yes..."

"Exactly...So moving in with me will put you one step closer to your actual goal."

"I guess you have a point-"

Chelsea didn't even give River the time to finish her thought before interrupting. "It's not like its forever, River. Move up here, work for a year or so before you move to greener fields. I'll even help you. You can save all your money and not even worry about rent. You know I inherited the house when my parents passed away."

Yes, as an only child, Chelsea lived alone in a big farmhouse she inherited from her parents after they passed away. The two girls hardly ever spoke of Chelsea's parents, whenever River tried to bring them up, Chelsea would abruptly change the subject. River didn't think much of it, maybe it was just a defense mechanism Chelsea used to deal with their death. All River knows is that Chelsea's parents died in a car accident three years ago when she was a young nineteen years old, although River suspected it to be more than that.

"Chelsea, that's very nice of you, but I can't possibly let you allow that..."

"Riv, Don't let your pride get in the way here..."

"It's not about pride!" River exclaimed. "I'd feel way too guilty. You know I feel weird when people do nice things for me. Gosh, I even feel guilty if my mom buys me a pair of socks."

"You're so weird." Chelsea chuckled. "But, please. You're my little sister and I'd do anything to have you near. Please, Riv, you're not happy. Your parents will understand..."

 _Will they?_

 _Will they really?_

At that moment she knew she had to take matters into her own hands if she wanted to be happy in the future. She got a part-time job and saved up every paycheck, including birthday money she got from family until she had enough for a one-way ticket and funds to help support herself up until she got a decent paying job in Bon Temps.

Just like that she gets interrupted from her deep thoughts by the door of the plane finally closing, along with her chances of changing her mind.

 _ **DING…**_

 _"Ladies and gentlemen, my name is George Parish and I'm your chief flight attendant. On behalf of Captain Mayer and the entire crew, welcome aboard Cape Airlines. Our flight will be leading to the state of Louisiana. Sit back, relax and enjoy the flight."_

 _ **DING…**_

The plane takes off and gone are all her hesitations of taking such a big leap.

She places her fingertips against the window and glances outside, breathing out softly. "Goodbye, sweet South Africa."

 **xxx**

When River first arrives in Louisiana airport many brutal hours later, she was graced by the image of her once long distant friend staring at her from across the room. In an instant River drops all her luggage to the ground and runs to Chelsea as fast as her short legs allows her to. She abruptly attacks Chelsea with the world's biggest hug, placing kisses all over her face. Her friend just as excited as herself to express her feelings, returning the same level of affection. There were some tears, a lot of giggles and quite a high pitch squeal erupting from Chelsea as they let the excitement sink in. River could basically feel Chelsea's happiness radiating through her body.

After the hug that ironically felt like seconds as well as decades ended, Chelsea grabs onto River's hand and pulls her along with her. The beaming smile never leaving her face.

"Come on. Let's go grab your things and get you home." Her beautiful country accent even thicker in person than on the phone.

Both girl's move to retrieve the luggage scattered all across the floor before making their way out of the airport and to Chelsea's beat up old car.

"I know she doesn't look like much, but Lady here gets the job done." Chelsea winks at River as she glides her palm over the worn red paint of the car.

"Lady?" River crooks an eyebrow.

"As far as I know, if I provide lil' Lady over here with love and affection, she won't break down on me." She opens the trunk and tosses the bags in the back before slamming it back shut. "Isn't that right, Lady?" She caresses the car affectionately, making River laugh out loud. "Can you guess why I named her Lady?"

"Hmm,-" River thinks to herself for a few seconds while staring the car down. "Because it's tiny and red, resembling a ladybug?"

"Smart cookie, I knew there's a reason I liked you." Chelsea jokes before the two girls jump into the car and head to River's new home far away from home.

 **XXX**

The first few days being in Bon Temps went quite well for River. Chelsea managed to persuade her boss into letting her stay home for a couple days until River had been settled in. River did find it amusing that Chelsea's boss would allow her to stay home for no real emergency, and the blonde would just laugh it off, saying how 'Sam' was a very nice guy.

They spent the days and nights in the house, watching movies, playing music and just bonding as much as possible, albeit the few days Sam agreed for Chelsea to stay home came quicker to an end than they would have liked. The next afternoon Chelsea was getting ready for work wearing a pair of ridiculously short and tight pants, with a white t-shirt with a logo on it from the bar she works at. She told River that she was going to leave the car for her so that she can drive around if she wanted to, maybe do some sightseeing if she so wished. River inquired how her friend would be going to work and she mentioned that her job is not very far from home, a walking distance.

A few hours after Chelsea left, River still found herself in her newfound special spot on the couch, just waiting for the hours to pass until her friend would be home. As on que, the telephone rings and River practically runs to the kitchen to answer.

"Hello?" She answers, trying not to sound out of breath.

"River...Can you do me a huge favor?" Chelsea asks.

"Sure..."

"I forgot my purse in Lady. Do you mind bringing it to me?"

River chokes back a scoff. The fact that Chelsea actually names her car… "Yeah, no problem. You're just going to have to remind me again where exactly the bar is."

"Okay, just drive down the gravel road until you get to the second right turn. You'll be able to see the bar from there if you keep driving straight."

"I'll be there in a few minutes." River ends the call, grabbing the keys from the counter and makes her way to Chelsea's beloved _Lady_.

 **XXX**

As River drives through the little town, she easily comes across the bar called Merlotte's. She parks in the nearest empty space and climbs out, pulling on her jean shorts that have been riding up her thighs too high. She leans in and grabs Chelsea's purse from the passenger seat Before slamming the door shut.

"Excuse me, Miss? You're in my spot." She hears a man speak. She abruptly turns to see if the man was referring to her and it turns out he is.

"Oh...I am so incredibly sorry! I had no idea these spots are reserved." She explains, offering an apologetic smile to the man.

"Uh, actually they aren't reserved. Just this one. It's mine. I own the bar." He scratches his head with his right hand as he speaks.

River nods at him understandably. "Well, that's no problem at all. Just give me a second to jump in and park in a different spot so you can have yours back." She turns, about to jump in but he stops her by grabbing hold of her elbow, suddenly feeling like a jerk.

"No, please...It's no problem at all, Miss..?"

"You can just call me River." She smiles at him.

"I'm Sam. Sam Merlotte." He extends his hand to her. River immediately takes it and gives him a firm shake.

"Great to meet you, Sam... Sam Merlotte."

She loosens the grip on him and he instinctively shoves his hands in his front pockets.

"Any chance you're the girl who recently moved in with Chelsea at the Woodman farmhouse?"

River lets out a little laugh. "Yup, I'm the one...What on earth gave it away?" She asks with a faint sarcastic undertone.

"Well, for one, that little accent you have there doesn't go unnoticed." He chuckles. "We don't get many foreign visitors around here. _Ever_... Say, where are you from again?" He narrows his eyes a little.

River lets out a little laugh. Oh, how this guessing game never gets old…

"Where do you think I'm from, Sam?" She asks, curious to what his answer might be.

"I-uh, I'm not sure. I can't point out a specific country. I know for sure it's not here...England, maybe? Australia?"

River can't help but giggle as she feels his confusion through his aura. "One can say I'm from down under." River hints towards her south residing country on the globe. "I'm actually from South Africa."

Sam's eyes widen in disbelief. "That's a far way from home... But, if you don't mind me asking, what the hell are you doing in Bon Temps?" He asks curiously.

"Well, Chelsea is here. I wanted to be closer to her. So I'll be staying here until I've saved enough money to move somewhere else." River explains, tossing Chelsea's purse over her shoulder. "Speaking of...I'm supposed to be delivering this to her."

Sam takes a step back to his truck and grabs a box from the back. "Well, I'll lead you straight to her...Follow me." He smiles and winks at her. River suddenly feels her cheeks growing red as she notices how handsome he actually is.

River follows Sam to the front entry of the bar. She steps inside and studies her surroundings. Her initial thought is that it's a very cozy place. Looking around there are a handful of customers sitting in a booth and a few more playing a game of pool. Clearly business isn't booming this time of day.

"Nice place." River admits with a smile.

"Thanks!" Sam beams at her as he places the box on the bar. "I promise it tends to get more crowded at night." He explains as if he could read River's mind. "Why don't you have a seat; I'll get you a bite to eat while you wait for her. What will it be?"

"Can I just have a water please?" River asks while sliding into an empty booth, placing the purse on the seat next to her.

"Coming right up." Sam smiles and grabs a bottled water from the mini fridge behind the bar and walks over to River, placing it on the table. "I'll go call her for you." He smiles and turns on his heel, heading to the kitchen."

As River waits for Chelsea, she sips on her water and studies the bar some more. With only a few souls inside the building, it wasn't hard for River to pick up every emotion in the room. Ever since she was little, she's been able to feel other people's emotions. It didn't matter if they were sad, mad, happy, she would feel it all. Thus having this 'gift' as her grandma would call it, kids in school would call her a freak. The older she got, the stronger it had become. She hasn't shared this with Chelsea in fear of her thinking she's a freak too. Hell, she is a freak. But she loved how normal she felt when being around Chelsea.

There had been numerous occasions where she noted she had moved objects accidentally just by looking at them for too long. She was sitting bored in class one day, staring absentmindedly at the pencil on her desk and it tuned a full 360* a couple of times. It took her by complete surprise. Unfortunately for her, the kid sitting next to her saw it all and spread rumors that she was some kind of witch who would cast spells on everyone and it resulted in her not having any friends. That was eight years ago, since then it had just gotten stronger, more powerful and sadly also more frequent.

Lost in her thought again, River fails to acknowledge her friend talking to her and gets a little fright when Chelsea shakes her around from the side.

"Earth to River!" Chelsea waves her hand in front of River's face.

"Oh...Sorry." River smiles up at her blonde friend.

"You better be lost in thought and not checking someone out. Cause literally none of those men are hot..." Chelsea raises a brow at River, pointing to the men playing a game of pool across the room.

No...No... They are definitely not hot.

"I was just thinking. That's all." River justifies herself.

"Did you bring my purse?" Chelsea asks.

"Yeah...It's right here." River reaches for the purse and hands it to her.

"Thanks. A girl from work needed to borrow some money… Again." Chelsea sighs out loud before the sound of glass scattering makes them both divert their attention to Sam who is standing behind the bar, attempting to clean the broken glass he "accidentally" dropped.

River knew better though, she felt his mood shift as soon as it happened and she knew it wasn't an accident. Sam seemed so happy minutes prior, what could have possibly upset him so quick?

"Sam, what's wrong?" River asks worried.

He looks in her direction and sighs. "My damn waitress just called me and let me know she's not coming in. We're busy at nights and one waitress won't cut it. I'm screwed."

"Who's not coming?" Chelsea asks curiously.

"Sookie..." Sam growls out irritated. "Probably off parading with her leech boyfriend."

Chelsea feels her stomach twist as Sam says the word and River catches her friend giving Sam a warning look before he speaks up again.

"Anyway...Arlene can't come 'cause she's got the kids...As for Dawn...God only knows what she's got herself into" He sighs heavily.

"Hold on, hold on, hold on!" Chelsea crooks her brow. "Dawn isn't coming? She was supposed to pick up some cash from me tonight!"

"I don't know what's going on with those two, Chelsea." Sam sighs out defeated.

There's a long pause of silence before Chelsea so graciously breaks it. "Well then, I'm just gonna go ahead and say what everyone else is thinking."

River arches her brow, feeling intrigued to what Chelsea has to say.

"I'm your best worker." She states simply. "Just save yourself the trouble and admit it, Sam." She places her hands on her hips, waiting for Sam to comply.

"Yeah, I guess you are, thank you, Chelsea." Sam chuckles.

"Dollars in my hand will be more appreciated than any verbal 'thank you'" Chelsea suggests.

River nudges Chelsea on the side, clearly her attempt to lighten the mood did not help for the irritable looking Sam.

River looks at him apologetically. "Would you allow me to help you tonight?" She surprisingly hears herself offer.

Damn...Why did she have to be such a nice person? She could easily think of how she would have rather wanted to spend her night. Albeit he is such a nice guy, and he truly is feeling upset. Plus, Chelsea is working tonight too, so she'd get to spend some time with her as well. Even if it's just a bit of a banter when they pass each other during the night.

"Yes! River can help!" Chelsea exclaims. "She's been wanting to find a job anyway. This would be great! We can carpool together! Plus, wear a little something tight and the tips are great!" She says a little too enthusiastically while slapping her ass.

Oh...The outfit makes so much more sense now...

"You looking for a job?" He asks River.

"Well, yeah. I kind of am. But I don't have a clue about waitressing, so I doubt I'd be an asset to your business here." River jokes.

"There's really not much to it." Sam chuckles. "But, let's call it a trial night? Work tonight and if you see yourself doing this in the future, you're welcome to work here whenever you want."

"Deal!" River giggled at them.

 **xxx**

River's job basically just consisted out of taking orders, handing them to the kitchen and then serving the meals to the customers. You would be surprised how rude some people can be. River had to bite her tongue quite a few times since she had no idea what Sam's policies are in terms with giving clients a piece of her mind. Ironically enough, some woman got aggressive because she claimed she had an extra burger charged to her bill, but River however saw her sneak the extra one she claimed not to have received into her purse. It took al River's self-control not to use her 'gift' to make the old bitch spill her drink all over herself while she took a greedy gulp from it.

She passes Sam by the bar and grabs a bottle of water from the mini fridge. "Hey Sam," She calls for his attention. "Do you mind if I take a little break? I just want to catch some fresh air."

"Yeah, no problem. Take your time." He says with a smile tugged on his lips.

With her water in hand, she makes her way to the entrance, stepping outside and into the crisp night air. She grabs her phone from her back pocket and checks the time. 12:10am it reads. She shoves it back into her pocket and thanks God that the shift would be over in 50 minutes.

There is no denying that her feet hurt really bad. She wasn't used to being on them for such a long period of time. She presses her back against the wall and slides down until she plops down on the floor with her butt. She stretches her legs out before herself and tries her best to suppress a moan that was threatening to spill from her lips. Yup, her feet thanked her dearly at this moment.

She wasn't left alone in her moment of bliss for long. The door creaks open and the flamboyant cook walks out, taking a stand next to her. She smiles up at him to be polite and rolls her head back against the wall, exhaling slowly. Oh, how she loved the night air.

He brings a cigarette to his lips and lights it before taking a long drag from it, exhaling a thick cloud of smoke around him.

"Yous want one?" He looks at her and juts out his arm to offer her the cigarette.

"Oh, no thank you, I don't smoke." She explains and offers him a smile, not wanting to seem rude.

He nods at her and smirks. "Good girl...So yous the white girl from the _mother land_."

"Yup, that's me..."

"Maybe yous more black than me inside." The smirk never leaving his face.

River doesn't verbally answer him but his statement does make her chuckle.

"So what yous doin' in this fucked up town anyway?" He asks, feeling very curious what this foreign girl would be doing in this specific town.

"What's wrong with Bon Temps? I think it's a charming little place."

He furrows his brows "Yeah, yous definitely don't belong here. All these motha fuckas care about around here is fucking, gettin' wasted and _drugs_." He sings the last word and the smirk returns, his hips doing a sensual twirl as he says it.

"Yeah, well then I really don't belong since I don't do any of those." She smirks back.

He chuckles at her response. "Oh, a little good girl yous is." He drags from his cigarette. "Maybe not for long..." He trails off.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asks with a crooked brow.

"Lots of men gonna want a piece of that fresh, fine ass." He states simply.

River can't help the slight blush that appears on her cheeks.

"Listen, I's been watchin' you tonight. And from what I's can tell, yous a sweet lil thang, a sexy bitch too. Yous got that special golden South African sun kissed skin with tha long brown hair, looking like a goddess walking up in this motha fucka-" He points to the bar before taking another drag. "Yous seem to have a brain in there-" He points to his head. "But if yous really is smart, yous best be getting in yous motha fuckin car and hurry the fuck outa here. Fucked up place this."

"Oh, it's not so bad. I rather enjoy it here." She admits honestly.

He raises his brows at her "Bitch, yous haven't been here long enough to find out. If I was you I wouldn't stay long enough to find out." He takes another drag. "I'm Lafayette by the way" He says as he finally flicks his cigarette to the ground.

"I'm River. It's nice to meet you, Lafayette."

" _River._..." He says her name in a sing-song to test it out on his tongue. "Well _River_ , we best be gettin' back to work. Wouldn't want yous fired on yous first night." He extends his hand for her to grab hold of.

She laughs and takes his hand in hers, allowing him to help her to her feet. "I guess you're right." She agrees and follows him back into the bar and finish the remainder of the shift.

 **XXX**

The night comes to an end and the last customer left. She sees Sam at the bar counting money and Chelsea chatting up some man she'd served tonight. Weighing her options, she finds the safest choice to sit at the bar and wait for Chelsea to finish her little pickup attempt. River walks over to Sam and pulls out a barstool before plopping down. He looks at River and smiles before going back to counting the cash before him.

Sam hands her a few notes of cash and she looks at him confused. "For your help tonight. Wouldn't have been able to handle it without you." Sam explains.

She shakes her head at him and smiles. "Sam, it was a trial night, remember?" She gets off the stool and stands on her aching feet.

"Please, take it." He slides the money over to her again.

River shakes her head again and slides it back to his direction but notices how he's about to slide it over to her once more.

She stops him. "Sam, try to offer me that money one more time and I swear I'm going to shove it up your ass." Her promise makes him chuckle hard.

"You ready to go?" Chelsea asks from across the room, the man she had been chatting up gone.

"Yeah!" River exclaims, feeling joy at the thought of going home after such a long night.

River walks towards the front entrance with Chelsea hot on her heels.

"Did I hear you say no to money?" She asks, narrowing her eyes at River.

River tries her best to suppress her giggle.

"We don't reject money!" She exclaims, making River laugh out at her friend.

"Night, Sam!" River yells over her shoulder.

"Yeah, night Sam...I'll be back for that money _real_ soon..." Chelsea jokes, or does she?

The blonde and the brunette both walks out the door, crosses the parking lot and finally reaches their car. With some effort to open the passenger door, River wiggles it roughly until it gives way. They climb inside and Chelsea's car roars to life with a cloud of smoke being spit out by the exhaust.

"What a night..." River speaks up.

"You did really good today, Riv." Chelsea smiles at her.

"Thanks... I hate to say it, but I kind of had fun tonight." She chuckles.

"And just think...If you choose to keep this job, I'll always be there to amuse you!" She exclaims.

Maybe life here won't be so bad after all...

As they make their way down the gravel road home, River plugs her IPhone in Chelsea's audio system and they start singing obnoxiously loud along to their favorite band.

 _You saved my life._

 _With blood and through sacrifice._

 _The lessons that I've learned._

 _I promise you I said never again_

 _Never again!_

 _No never!_

 _Hey! It began with an ending._

 _Hey! We were fighting for the world._

 _Hey! My desire never ending._

 _Hey! The-the-the race. Race_

 _ **Thirty Seconds To Mars...**_

 _ **AN:**_ That's the end of chapter one! Again, thank you all for reading. Do feel free to PM me anytime, I'd be happy to hear from you all. Don't forget to review, favorite and follow!

Some people have been asking me what River's accent would sound like since she's from South Africa, and the best way I can explain it is that it sounds more British.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two.**

 _ **AN:**_ _Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. Please, drop a review. They motivate me to write! A million times thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows! It means so much to me!_

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _Sadly, I don't own TrueBlood, but I do own my OC's._

 **XXX**

Since River and Chelsea had gotten home in the early hours of the morning after their shift at the bar, they were very much appreciative of the ability to catch up on some much needed rest and sleep in late.

When River had woken up from her slumber, she tossed her incredibly soft and warm duvet from her body and swiftly jumped out of bed to relieve herself. Once her deed was done, she emerges from her bedroom and walks down the hall to Chelsea's own, where the door was left slightly ajar. She stood in front of the doorway and stuck her head through the gap to check up on her friend who was still very much asleep. River feels a smile tug at her lips as she listens to the soft little snores filling the room.

She pulls her head back and grabs hold of the doorknob, closing the creaky door behind her before heading down the stairs, straight into the kitchen. She rummages through the fridge and the pantry, pulling out every needed ingredient for her infamous batches of pancakes.

From inside Chelsea's bedroom, the smell of something sweet baking was enough for her stomach to rumble herself back to consciousness. She flips onto her back, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and takes a huge whiff of the delicious smell lingering around her bedroom. She jumps out of bed, rips her bedroom door open and walks straight to the area of the house the source is coming from.

As River tends to her creation before herself, she wonders if the smell alone would be enough to wake Chelsea from her slumber, but her mind was quickly put to ease when a sudden cheery and bright aura enters the room, confirming her suspicion.

"Pancakes!?" Chelsea exclaims excitedly once finding River in front of the stove, pan in hand, flipping her pancakes with some mad skills.

"You guessed it." River confirms, smiling brightly at her friend.

Chelsea immediately walks towards River and grabs a pancake from the counter before almost stuffing the entire thing in her mouth, making approving noises in the process.

"Good, right?" River smirks at Chelsea who can only agree by nodding her head enthusiastically and making more approving noises.

As River pours the last of the batter in the pan, the phone rings. Chelsea swallows down the remainder of pancake in her mouth as fast as she can while grabbing the phone to answer.

"Hello?" Chelsea mumbles into the phone.

"Hey, Chelsea. It's Sam."

"Hey there, Sam, Sammy, Samuel. What can I do ya for?" Chelsea answers in her southern flare accent.

"I hate to do this again, but would you mind covering the day shift today?"

Chelsea personally preferred to work the night shift at the bar, claiming the tips are better since more customers came along during dark hours. She had no problem flaunting her sexuality and body in her tight attires around horny men for her benefit. Anything for a greater tip.

Chelsea lets out a sigh. "Sookie and Dawn not comin' in again?" She asks annoyed. "You know Sam, you really should consider firing them since they hardly come in for work."

"I got some bad news… " Sam trails off.

"What is it?" Chelsea asks impatiently.

"Sookie found Dawn in her apartment early this morning after trying to get ahold of her the past couple of days."

"Oh good…" Chelsea obnoxiously replies, eyeing the delicious pancakes on the counter next to river. Hoping and praying this conversation would be over soon.

"No Chelsea. She's dead…"

She freezes…The news taking her by complete surprise.

"W-what?" She furrows her brows in disbelief. "What happened to her?" Chelsea demands.

"As far as I know, she was involved in some fanger bullshit. Wouldn't be surprised if one of them got to her…"

Her stomach instantly drops and her blood suddenly turns cold.

Fangers…

Chelsea hated fangers…

She quickly gazes towards River whose back was still turned towards her. Chelsea quickly walks out of the kitchen and stands around the corner, as far away from River as the telephone cord allows her, trying to avoid River from hearing anything. Though Chelsea is unaware that her sudden mood change didn't go unnoticed by River.

Chelsea hated the fact that she was being dishonest to her best friend about how her parents died. She had told River that they died in a car accident a few years ago, when in reality it had more to it. Thus every time she hears about something involving fangers, she is forced to relive the reality of how they actually died.

 _Her mother spent her days at home while her father worked in the police force. Unfortunately, he got involved with some bad people and got fired from his job. On the verge of losing their home, her father asked for favors from the same people, favors bigger than what he could repay. Things escalated quickly and her father had no choice but to try and run. One night he came home from one of his business meetings and started grabbing items, shoving them into garbage bags. Chelsea and her mother had asked her father what was going on, why he was being so paranoid and he yelled at them to pack their belongings and be in the car within five minutes. With their most valuable belongings in hand, they got in the car and left town as fast as possible. Trying to put as much distance between them and Bon Temps as they could._

 _Couple towns over, they had decided to stop at a cheap motel to rest before hitting the road again the following morning. It was late at night and her parents had already went to sleep when Chelsea decided to take a shower. She was busy rinsing her hair when the sounds of faint screams and struggling caught her attention. She quickly turned off the water, ripped the shower curtain aside and tried to listen intently, but as soon as it happened, the sounds completely stopped._

" _Mom?" Chelsea had called out._

 _No response._

" _Dad?" She called louder._

 _Silence._

 _She quickly grabbed the fuzzy white towel draped over the basin and wrapped it around her dripping body before climbing out of the tub, unlocking the door and pushing it open._

" _Momma?" She called into the dark room._

 _The room was so silent she could have heard a pin drop._

 _She pushed herself back against the wall and felt her way towards the light switch._

 _In a blink of an eye it took for the room to be completely lit, Chelsea lets out a blood curdling scream at the image before her._

 _Blood._

 _So much blood._

 _Blood splattered all over the walls._

 _Her parents laying lifelessly in a puddle of their own life source._

 _She drops to her knees and crawls towards the bodies. She brushes the hair out of her mother's face before trying to check for a pulse._

 _She pauses._

 _Bite marks..._

 _Bite marks covering her mother's neck._

 _She glances towards her father who had the same assault wounds._

 _She quickly stands to her feet and runs towards the telephone, dialing for help._

 _"911, what's your emergency?" The woman on the other end of the line spoke up._

 _"I-I need help. My p-parents..." Chelsea sobbed out hysterically._

 _"Ma'am I'm gonna have to ask you to calm down and tell me what happened."_

 _"I don't know!" Chelsea cried out. "I was in the shower a-and I heard noises. W-when I came into the room, t-they were d-dead..." Chelsea cried out with her voice sounding hoarse. "B-bite marks." She tried to explain, tears streaming down her face._

"So you'll help out today? I'll pay you double." Sam's voice breaks her out of her flashback.

Wait, did he just say double? He didn't have to ask her twice.

"Fine!" Chelsea agrees, walking back into the kitchen. "I'll be there soon." She says irritably before slamming the phone back on the counter, ending the call.

"What's the matter?" River asks curiously, dishing the pancakes into plates.

"Remember that girl, Dawn? The one Sam talked about Yesterday?" Chelsea asks while walking towards the table in the middle of the kitchen, pulling out a chair and sitting down.

River nods her head.

"She was found dead in her apartment."

River's eyes widen instantly.

"What?!" She asks surprised, quickly pulling out a chair in front of Chelsea and plopping herself down. "What happened?"

"She got murdered." Chelsea states simply. Not wanting to give out too much information.

"Do they have a suspect?" River asks curiously. "How did they kill her?" She presses on. "When did it happen?"

"I don't know." Chelsea responds softly before lifting her hand, guiding it to her mouth and nibbling on her nails. Something River noted Chelsea only does when she's nervous.

Chelsea wouldn't have considered Dawn a friend, but they did have a civil relationship at work. Sure, Dawn did borrow money often from her, failing to pay it back in time, but she would never have wanted her dead. Especially not by the hands of bloodthirsty fangers.

River notices Chelsea's aura change. She knows for certain her friend is withholding some truth from her… She can feel it.

"Chelsea…What's the matter…You know you can tell-" River starts to speak but Chelsea interrupts her.

"Hey, everything is fine!" Chelsea exclaims while faking a smile. "Dawn was involved in some messed up shit. She was just looking for trouble if you ask me." She stands to her feet. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go to work."

"Can I come with?" River asks hopeful, suddenly too afraid to be left alone anywhere by herself.

Chelsea so desperately wanted to say no. She didn't want to risk River hearing gossip about how it could have been caused by fangers, but she knew this brunette sitting before her better than she knew herself. She knew River tends to be afraid of everything. She knew that mentally River would be freaking out and be too paranoid to be home alone after what had happened to Dawn.

"Of course, go get dressed." Chelsea says, making a mental note to have a quick chat with Sam as soon as she arrives at work.

"But...But I'm hungry." River pouts, pointing down to her pancakes.

"You can order something at the bar." Chelsea says while walking out of the kitchen. "Go get dressed, Riv." Chelsea reiterates, shouting over her shoulder as she runs upstairs to her bedroom.

 **XXX**

The two girls arrive at the bar just in time for Chelsea to fall into her next shift. The moment Chelsea answered Sam's call earlier the morning, she has been off. She tried to fake a smile around River and pretend to be fine, but even if River didn't have her 'gift', she would still have been able to see right through Chelsea's façade.

Chelsea walks straight towards the bar and grabs an apron from behind it, tying it securely around her waist. "Go sit down, I'll be right with you." Chelsea says with a small smile before making her way to Sam's office.

River complies and slides into the nearest booth, trying to ignore her rumbling stomach.

In front of Sam's office, Chelsea lifts her hand and softly knocks on the door before pushing it open, letting herself in.

"Hey, Sam. I'm here-" Chelsea starts to speak, her back still turned towards the room while closing the door behind her. "-At work, unlike _some_ people we know." She finishes her thought, her hint directed towards Sookie.

She turns around and finds Sam not as alone as she initially thought. "Sookie...? I thought Sam said you're not coming in." Chelsea's furrows her brows.

"Isn't it so awful?" Sookie begins to speak. "When I found Dawn dead this morning, I came straight to work. I mean, the last thing this town needs on a day like this is for the bar to be closed when all the people need is a stiff drink." Sookie explains.

"How...noble of you." Chelsea forces a smile.

"Thank you so much for coming in today, Chelsea. I really appreciate it." Sam says honestly.

"For twice the pay, anytime." She smiles lightly at him. "Can I talk to you in private?" She asks.

Sam notices a hint of desperation behind her calm façade, so he nods his head, averting his gaze to the other perky blonde. "Hey, Sook. Mind giving us a second?"

"Not at all." She smiles as she makes her way out of the office, closing the door behind her.

No point in beating around the bush, Chelsea cuts straight to the point.

"Sam, I need you to promise me that you won't mention anything about this to River." Chelsea pleads.

"You mean about Dawn's death?" Sam asks.

"Ye-, I mean no." Chelsea throws her head back and sighs loudly. "I already told her Dawn is dead. I just didn't give out too much information about anything."

"Like what?" Sam asks curiously.

"Well, for one, don't mention anything about bite marks or fangers. I don't want River to freak out. I never really told her about Bon Temps having vampires." Chelsea explains.

"Don't you think she's gonna find out eventually?" Sam furrows his brows.

"Yes...Eventually. Not right now. I basically just got her here. I don't want her runnin' home and leaving me just yet." Chelsea feels the bile rising in her stomach from the sickening thought.

"I won't say anything. I promise." Sam smiles reassuringly at her.

"Thank you, Sam." She offers him a small smile in return, feeling some weight lifted off her shoulders.

"You really care about her, huh?" Sam asks, his head cocked to the side.

"She's my sister." Chelsea says simply. "She means everything to me."

 **XXX**

As River sits in the booth waiting on Chelsea, she can't help but wonder what had changed her sister's mood so drastically. She didn't like how Chelsea was keeping things from her, but she had no right to complain since she was withholding some truth from Chelsea too. Maybe Chelsea was better friends with Dawn than what she let her to believe. Deep within she does feel hurt that Chelsea doesn't want to talk to her about her problems, but she'll never force Chelsea, or anybody, to do something they don't want to. What bothers her even more is that maybe Chelsea feels like she can't open up to her. As River sits in silence, contemplating how she can break through to Chelsea, a bright voice breaks through the silence.

"Hi, my name's Sookie and I'll be your waitress for this afternoon. What can I get you?" She asks with a bright smile on her face. Her aura basically screams cheery.

"Hi, may I just have some strong coffee and a salad?" River ask and offers her a smile.

Sookie's eyes widen instantly and she beams at River. "Oh, my! You're the girl from South Africa? Who would've thought? I didn't even know until I heard you speak just now." She rambles on.

"Did you expect a person of color?" Sookie's face turns white, her expression dulls and River can feel how mortified she is.

"I'm sorry, I didn-" She starts but River interrupts her.

"Sookie, it's alright, really! Calm down." River laughs. "You'd be surprised how many times I got that already. I'm River, by the way."

"That's a pretty name. Nice to meet you." She smiles warmly. "I'll be right back with your order." She turns around and hurries to the kitchen to place the order.

From inside the kitchen, Sookie is leaning over the order window, staring attentively at River, studying her every move while she waits for Lafayette to prepare the salad. Sookie closes her eyes and tries to listen intently at River's thoughts.

Nothing.

She's so focused on River that she fails to hear Lafayette calling her name, three times already.

"Sookie!" Lafayette yells again.

She quickly turns around, eyeing her friend. "There is no need to shout, mister!" She scolds him.

"If yous been paying attention, you would've heard me calling, bitch." He raises a brow at her.

"Oh..."

"What yous up to anyway? Spying ain't nice" He warns her by raising his spatula, giving her a knowing look.

"That girl. There's something not right with her." Sookie admits to Lafayette.

"Who? That new hookah?" Lafayette asks curiously.

Sookie nods her head.

"Why yous think that?" Lafayette asks again.

"Well. I can't hear hear thoughts...its weird right?" She furrows her brows.

"It's only weird if yous make it weird." Lafayette chuckles.

"Lafayette...I can hear everyone's thoughts...Everyone except for vampires..." Sookie reminds him.

She immediately gets Lafayette's full attention.

"You think she's involved with some fanger bullshit?" He asks curiously, stepping closer to the order window to look River over himself.

"It's the only explanation...I'm gonna go find out." She says and quickly marches out of the kitchen, only to be stopped by her friend grabbing hold of her elbow, pulling her back.

"Sookie, don't yous be starting trouble...I knows you..."

Sookie grabs the plate of salad from the counter and turns on her heel. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Lafayette." She says with her head held high, leaving the kitchen.

 **XXX**

Bored out of her mind while waiting for her order, River grabs the salt and pepper shakers and starts toying around with them, trying to entertain herself. An idea pops into her head so she glances around her shoulder to make sure no one is looking her way.

She looks at the salt shaker, lifting her finger and moving it to the right.

Nothing.

She tries harder.

Nothing.

She takes a deep breath and exhales slowly before closing her eyes shut, clearing her mind and focusing hard, trying to muster all her power together. After a few more breaths she lifts her hand slightly, moving it to the right. She opens her eyes and finds that the shaker indeed moved. Looking around the bar once more before closing her eyes again, she decides to kick it up a notch. Placing her hand over the shaker, she lifts her arm upwards. She can feel how this small action is draining the energy from deep within, her palm heating up with every passing second. She takes a deep breath before opening her eyes, finding the shaker floating in midair.

She smiles proudly at herself.

"How did you jus-" Sookie's voice makes her jump and the shaker falls to the table, salt spilling all over.

"Shit!" She accidentally exclaims, feeling her heart pounding rapidly in her chest.

"I was just-uh." She rambles. "I was just practicing on my juggling." She blurts out the first lie to pop into her mind.

 _'Dumb! Dumb! Dumb!'_ She mentally scolds herself over and over again.

Sookie shakes her head and furrows her brows. "No, I saw you! I've been watching you since I last left you...I saw you move the shaker to the side and then you made it float in the air!"

River laughs nervously. "Sookie, can you hear yourself? That's crazy!"

"Don't you call me crazy… I know what I saw!" She argues, her volume too loud for River's liking.

River suddenly jumps to her feet and gently places her hand over Sookie's mouth to keep her quiet. Her eyes pleading. "Sookie, I'm begging you, keep it down." She begs, worried Chelsea might see Sookie making a scene and ask questions later.

Feeling certain enough that Sookie has calmed down, River lets her hand fall and slides back into the booth with a heavy sigh while Sookie narrows her eyes, looking River straight in the eye as if trying to read her thoughts. "What are you? Are you a witch?" Sookie demands.

"No!" River exclaims forcefully, feeling the anger brewing up inside her. She's been called a damn witch one too many times.

"Why can't I hear your thoughts? I knew there was something different about you the first moment I laid eyes on you." Sookie cocks her head to the side.

River furrows her brows. "Hear my thoughts? What are you tal-" Sookie interjects.

"What are you?" Sookie presses on.

"I'm human, obviously." River states the obvious.

Sookie sits down adjacent to River in the booth, placing the salad on the table. She leans forward before speaking up again. "No, you're not. Humans can't move objects like you just did. Are you a-"

"I don't have time for this bullshit." River mumbles while grabbing her bag, trying to make a break for it but Sookie is one step ahead. Suddenly she plops down right beside River, preventing her from sliding out of the booth.

"Sookie, please…." River pleads.

"Hey, it's okay. Trust me, I'm not as normal as you think either." Sookie gives her a comforting smile.

"What do you mean by that?" River asks curiously.

"What I mean is that I'm a telepath."

River sits in silence as she tries to focus on Sookie's aura. This is a lie; it has to be. But, why can't she feel a trace of dishonesty emitting from Sookie?

"Prove it…" River says cocky. "Tell me what number I'm thinking of right now."

Sookie chuckles. "That's the odd thing. I can't tell what you're thinking" She admits.

"Well, why not?" River asks curiously.

"I honestly don't know. I can read the mind of every person I've ever encountered, everyone except for you and my boyfriend. It's so weird." Sookie admits.

"Why can't you? What's wrong with me?" River inquires.

"I tell you I can read minds and you ask me what wrong with you?" Sookie giggles. "I promise you I'm not making any of this up. If you want, you could ask anyone around here, they'll be happy to tell you how much of a freak I am."

River stays silent for a moment while thinking to herself. She knows she has this ability, and she's always wondered if there are others just like her. Her grandma always told her to be patient, that the day would come eventually. The day would come when she would be able to understand herself more, so maybe today is that day. Maybe she found that somebody right here in Bon Temps. So who was she to question Sookie?

"I don't think that makes you a freak." River says softly. She always hated how some people thought they had the right to label others, making them feel shitty about themselves. She's had personal experiences with it all. "How long have you been able to do this?" She asks.

"As long as I can remember." Sookie says truthfully. "What about you?"

"Pretty much the same, I guess." River admits.

"So you've always been able to move stuff?"

"Well, the moving of objects started about eight years ago... It has become more frequent and stronger since then. I've learned to control it somewhat, but there are days when I can't." River admits truthfully while looking down at her fingers.

"What else can you do?" Sookie inquires.

"I-uh." River stammers. "The moving of objects and I feel stuff."

"What do you mean?" Sookie leans in closer, obviously very intrigued.

"I don't really know how to explain..." River starts. "When I'm around people, I feel their moods...Their auras." She says, hoping it would be enough information for the tiny blonde.

Sookie nods her head in amazement, a full smile spreading across her face. "That is so freaking cool!" She exclaims, causing River to chuckle.

River's facial expression suddenly changes, gone are any traces of amusement as the fear becomes evident on her features. "Sookie, please. You can't tell anyone, not even Chelsea." She starts to plead. "I grew up the freak back home, and since moving here, I feel like I can start over...A fresh start. I don't want people knowing. I don't want to be _that_ girl anymore..."

"I won't tell anyone, I promise. Trust me, I know what you went through." She smiles at her.

For once River has someone to relate with.

"Wow, I can't believe I met someone who's like me!" Sookie chuckles.

"Okay, seriously, enough about me. What about you, what else can you do?" River asks.

"Nothing, I just hear things." Sookie answers with a smile.

"What about your boyfriend? Does he have some gift as well?" River asks curiously, remembering how Sookie mentioned she couldn't read either of their minds.

"He's got the V running through his veins." Sookie smirks.

"I beg your pardon?" River furrows her brows in confusion.

"You know, he's a vampire." Sookie says with an excited smile on her face.

A vampire? Here in Bon Temps?

River isn't completely oblivious; she knows vampires exists. She's heard it on television, read it in the papers...But she's never encountered one personally.

"Wait, you know about vampires?" River asks shocked.

"Well, yeah...Bon Temps is full of them." Sookie replies simply.

Chelsea never said anything about vampires…

"And you're dating one?!" River exclaims.

Sookie laughs out loud. "Out of everything we just talked about, this you find more interesting?"

River giggles. "Well...Yeah! Vampires!"

"You're not a fang-hater are you?" Sookie asks worried. Her aura suddenly changing darker.

"No. Definitely not." River promises. "If I'm honest, I'm very intrigued actually."

Leaving his office and entering the bar, Sam finds Sookie sitting down and having a chat with River. He approaches them, determined to find out if River will be able to aid him in his time of need.

"Hey, River. How you doin'?" He asks with a smile.

"Hi, Sam. I'm doing very well thanks, how are you?" River smiles back.

"I don't know, it kinda depends right now. Any chance you've decided about taking the job?" He asks hopeful.

"Actually, I decided to take it. I think it would be good for now." River answers.

"That's great!" He exclaims. "When can you start?"

"I can star-" River starts to speak, but Sookie interrupts her.

"She can start tomorrow night." Sookie says simply. "Now if you don't mind, Sam Merlotte, River and I were having a conversation and I'd like to finish it in private." She raises a brow at him.

Sam scratches the back of his head. "Uh, yeah. Sure, sorry." He apologizes and quickly turns on his heel, walking away awkwardly.

River tries her best to suppress her laugh. "What was that for, I was ready to start today!" She exclaims.

"I wanted to ask you a favor and I don't want him hearing about it...He isn't a fan of vampires."

"Okay…What type of favor?" River inquires.

"With your gift, you mentioned that you can feel a person's emotion…" She trails off. "Can you tell when someone is being untruthful?" Sookie asks curiously.

"You mean if someone is lying?" River asks.

Sookie nods her head.

"Yes, lying gives out a specific emotion and aura." River admits.

Sookie nods her head in understanding again before speaking. "I don't know if you have heard this, but my brother, Jason Stackhouse has been accused for the murder of two girls. One of them being Dawn." Sookie notices how River's lips draw back in a hard line, most probably from feeling uncomfortable by the information she just heard. "Before you get the wrong idea, he is innocent."

"How do you know?" River asks curiously.

"I know my brother. He may be dumb but he's no killer. He could never be capable of something like this."

"And what is this favor you speak of?" River asks.

"My boyfriend is taking me to a vampire bar in Shreveport tonight so I can snoop out some answers."

"Why a vampire bar?" River asks curiously.

"Well, because both girls had fang marks on them." She explains.

"So they were bitten." River states more than ask. "So you think a vampire is responsible?"

"I'm not sure, but I know my brother is innocent..."

"I'm still confused with what this has to do with me…" River thinks aloud.

"I was hoping you'd come with and help me." Sookie smiles brightly.

River's heart skips a beat. She knows she admitted that she was intrigued by vampires and had no problem with them, but that does not automatically make her comfortable with being in some kind of nest infested with them…

"T-To the v-vampire bar?" River stutters, her attempt to sound casual failing.

Sookie nods her head.

"Sookie…I don't kno-" River starts but Sookie grabs hold of her hand, demanding her full attention.

"Oh, please, River…Say you'll help. I'd appreciate it so much." Sookie begs with pleading eyes, her lip almost pouting.

A saying her mom taught her comes to mind; _Treat others how you want to be treated._

River sits back and contemplates her options. She knows deep inside that she's going to give in to the pouting blonde before her. All her life she's had an inability to say no to someone when she's face to face with them. She felt so bad for the desperate looking Sookie. Hell, if the roles were reversed, she wouldn't have appreciated Sookie rejecting her when she needed help.

She bites her lip nervously before answering. "Okay..." She says softly. "I'll help you."

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Sookie exclaims, wrapping her arms around River and squeezing her tightly for a long minute before letting go.

"So, should I pick you up tonight... At eight?" Sookie beams.

"Sure, that would be great." River smiles. "You know where I live?"

"Sure do, that's about the only good thing about a small town. Everyone knows where everyone lives." Sookie winks before standing to her feet and straightening out her uniform. "Okay, I'll leave you to eat. If you need anything else, just shout." She smiles and walks off feeling very pleased with herself.

 **XXX**

While River is busy eating, Chelsea plops down next to her with a heavy sigh. "Wish this day would be over already." She growls out irritably, grabbing hold of the salad bowl and sliding it towards her, taking a greedy bite from it. "But, I gotta be here 'till midnight probably. I'm gonna be dead tired." She says with a mouth full of lettuce.

"Speaking of dead…" River clears her throat. "Why didn't you tell me about the vampires in this town?!" She hits Chelsea's arm.

Chelsea's stomach instantly drops.

"W-what are you talking about?" She plays dumb, trying to play it cool by taking another casual bite from the salad.

River narrows her eyes. "Vampires… Sookie told me all about it."

"What exactly is it that she said?" Chelsea fishes out for information. Not wanting to say more than what is needed.

"Not much…She did mention that Bon Temps is full of them. Why didn't you ever mention this to me?" River asks curiously.

"It just never came up…"

"I think it's something I should have known before moving here, don't you think?"

Chelsea sighs out in defeat. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry." She says sincerely before another thought pops into her mind. "What else did Sookie say?" She better not have told River about her parents.

"Well…" River takes a deep breath. "She's taking me to some bar tonight-" River starts to speak but Chelsea immediately interjects.

"What bar?" She demands rather forcefully.

"Uhm, some vampire bar." River bites her lip.

Chelsea feels a stab in her chest hearing the words spill over River's lips.

Is this what a heart attack feels like?

"River….That is not a good idea! That's just asking for trouble!" Chelsea exclaims.

"Calm down, it's no big deal." River says casually before attempting to take a sip of her drink but Chelsea grabs hold of her hand, demanding her full attention.

"It's a huge fucking deal!" She argues.

"Chelsea, I already promised her. I can't back out now."

"Sure you can…" Chelsea scoffs. She'd gladly do it for River.

"Is there another reason you don't want me to go?" River raises a brow.

" _No_ …" Chelsea over-pronounces to seem more confident, but River can feel her hidden emotion so she gives Chelsea a knowing look.

"It's just dangerous. That's all." Chelsea says softly.

"I'll be fine, I promise." River smiles reassuringly.

"You're not gonna change your mind no matter what I say, are you?" Chelsea asks defeated, she knew how stubborn River could be.

"Nope." River says simply.

"What time will you be home?" Chelsea asks.

"I'm not sure, but don't wait up."

"Do you need the car? I'd feel more comfortable knowing you won't be stranded somewhere."

"No, I'll be fine. Sookie will drop me off right after."

"I don't like her." Chelsea sneers.

"Yes, I'm well aware." River chuckles before standing to her feet and climbing over Chelsea. "I'm going to go to the store before heading home, want anything?"

"Yeah, for you to stay home." Chelsea mumbles, but River narrows her eyes at her. "Fine!" She sighs out in defeat. "Some more bubblegum and marshmallow cereal would be nice." She rolls her eyes, even though she really-really wanted more of it.

River laughs. "You got it." She says before kissing Chelsea on the forehead and heading to the entrance.

"Make good choices…" Chelsea yells out after her.

All Chelsea can do now is worry…

 **XXX**

 _ **AN:**_ _That's the end of chapter two. What did you guys think? Feel free to PM me, I'd love to hear what you all have to say. Please don't forget to review, favorite and follow. Thank you all!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three.**

 _ **AN:**_ _This is a shorter chapter. I initially wrote a huge chapter but decided to divide it and publish this so long while I edit the rest. Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. Please, drop a review. They motivate me to write! A million times thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows! It means so much to me!_

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _Sadly, I don't own TrueBlood, but I do own my OC's._

 **XXX**

After leaving the bar and wasting a good amount of spare time browsing through most of the stores in town, River finally arrives back home long before Sookie is due to pick her up. In all honesty, she would've liked to have wasted more time since she didn't like the idea of being home alone at all, not even for a minute. She's been trying her best not to think of Dawn and what had happened to her, but it's been running through her mind on a constant loop. This was the last thing she expected to happen in a small town like this, double murders in a few days? That's crazy.

With heavy feet she climbs the steps to the porch and walks up to the front door, dropping the grocery bags on the floor next to her feet. She pulls her purse closer and rummages through it to dig out her keys, but the heavy, unsteady grocery bags tip over, pushing the front door slightly ajar.

This isn't right. The door should've been locked…

River's stomach instantly drops and an icy shiver runs up her spine. Her subconscious is telling her to leave. It's telling her to drop everything in her hands and run back to the bar as fast as her short legs allows her to, but she knows it would be too late anyway. If there were someone -something- inside this house, they would've heard her already, and by the time she starts running, they would've caught up to her and kill her somewhere in the woods where Chelsea may not find her rotting corpse for days…weeks…years. Okay, maybe she may be exaggerating. Her mind may always jump to the worst conclusion, but lord almighty, she's never been this scared.

Is she the next Dawn?

She looks over her shoulder and notices the sun hasn't fully set yet. Regarding what she had read in books and seen in movies, vampires wouldn't be awake yet. Even if they were, they wouldn't be able to go outside, so if there was someone inside, it couldn't be a vampire. Right?

She gingerly reaches for the door and pushes the creaky door open very slowly before stepping inside.

It's quiet…

All she can hear is her heart practically beating in her ears.

She slowly places one foot in front of the other as she enters further into the house.

"H-Hello?" She calls out into the empty living room.

Dead silence.

"Is s-somebody in here?!" She yells out louder as she cautiously treads towards the kitchen, but not before grabbing Chelsea's Grandfathers old cane next to the fireplace for some sort of a weapon to defend herself with if need be.

Just as she's about to cut the corner and walk into the kitchen, the telephone suddenly rings, giving River a soul escaping fright. The cane she once held on to for dear life falling to the ground with a loud thud.

She involuntarily places her palms over her chest as if the little act would help her dangerously high heartbeat slow down before lunging towards the telephone.

She takes a couple deep breaths before swallowing hard.

"H-Hello?" River speaks into the phone, sounding as casual as she can.

"Where have you been?!" The sound of Chelsea's voice brining River pure relief.

"What do you mean?" River asks before clearing her throat.

"I've been calling the house for hours now."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I was wasting some time in town." River explains. "Hey, did you lock the house before we left earlier today?" River asks curiously, she just had to know.

"No, I didn't." Chelsea says simply. "Why, is something wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong. It was just weird coming home and the door was practically open."

"Welcome to Bon Temps, Riv." Chelsea chuckles through the phone. "No one locks their homes here."

"That's a bit irresponsible don't you think?"

"Don't worry, it's a safe town." Chelsea promises.

River can't help the thought from popping into her head, clearly it's not that safe if two girls have been killed already.

"Are you okay? You sound a little distraught. Maybe you should rather stay home tonight."

River involuntarily rolls her eyes. Here she goes again, using any and every excuse to stop River from going to that damn vampire bar.

"No, I'm fine." River says simply. "I'm going tonight, and that's final."

"Fine, Jeez." Chelsea sighs out loud. "Hey, did you buy my cereal?"

"Yes, Chelsea." The corners of River's lips curls into a small smile.

"The bubblegum flavored ones with the little marshmallows in?"

"Yes, Chelsea…"

"Thank youuuu!" Chelsea's melodic voice sings into the phone.

"Wait, did you just call me to hear if I remembered your cereal?" River asks with a raised brow while she plays with the telephone cord, curling it around her finger.

There's a long pause before Chelsea answers. "Maybe…" She trails off. "Listen, I gotta go before Sam busts my balls for calling from work. I'll see you later tonight. I love you."

"Yeah okay. I love you too, bye." River laughs softly before ending the call and placing the phone back on the counter.

She walks out of the kitchen, through the living room and to the porch to pick up the plastic bags along with her purse from the floor before stepping back inside and closing the door behind her, making sure to lock it this time.

She places the bags on the counter and begins to pack all the items away, beginning with the few bottles of trueblood she bought. She certainly didn't want the…-blood?- to spoil from being outside in the heat of Louisiana for too long. Don't judge her, you guys. She's not a vampire expert like y'all are by now.

Back at the store when River found the refrigerator that held all the synthetic blood, she was quite shocked by how big of a variety vampires had to choose from. A+, A-, O+, O-, AB+… It was all too confusing. She stood there frozen to her spot as she studies the bottles, trying to contemplate which blood type Bill would rather prefer. She even stupidly searched for fellow true blood shoppers around her to ask which blood type would be best recommended before she mentally face palmed herself as soon she realized that humans don't drink it, nor are there any vampires around to ask…

Not that she would ask a vampire…

She grabbed a couple bottles, deliberately avoiding the A+ section. That was her blood type, and to her it felt like if she gave it to him for consumption, it would weirdly feel like she's offering Bill to drink her own blood from her own veins. No, thank you.

 **XXX**

Since there was quite some time left, River decided that she would take a nap to pass some more time before her guests would arrive. When she finally woke, feeling well rested and refreshed, she glances at the grandfather clock in the corner of the living room. It reads 19;15pm.

Damn, she didn't mean to sleep for that long.

She jumps from the couch and sprints up the steps to her own adjoined bathroom to get ready. She turns on the water to the shower before jumping in herself. She wets her hair and grabs the vanilla scented shampoo, allowing the sweet smell to fill her senses as she massages her scalp with the golden liquid. She rinses her long brown strands and applies the conditioner, allowing it to sit while using her purple loofa that is saturated with sweet smelling soap, scrubbing away at her skin before rinsing again.

She turns off the water and reaches for the fuzzy white towel draped over the basin before drying herself completely. She rips the plastic curtain to the side, steps out of the shower and wraps the towel around her wet strands before retrieving the tub of coco butter cream, applying a layer of it all over her body.

She pulls her bathroom door open and walks into her bedroom, finally reaching her dresser, pulling out a pair of black skinny jeans and a white lace top and some underwear. She tosses the damp towel on the bed and quickly pulls on her panties and bra before easily slipping on her lace top. She sticks one foot before the other in her jeans and pulls it over her thighs, doing a little dance as she tries to get the material over her curves.

Fully clothed, and somewhat out of breath, she reaches for her heels at the bottom of her closet and slips them on her feet. She walks to the full length mirror on the wall next to her dresser and checks herself out.

Her long, dark brown hair is flowing over her shoulders and back in soft, loose curls. She kept her makeup natural looking, opting for soft-brown eyeshadow, peachy cheeks and nude lip-gloss glistening on her plump lips. Her dark brown eyes look black thanks to the winged eyeliner painted on her upper eyelid. The raven black pumps are elongating her defined legs and making them look even sexier. She would have liked to add some more mascara to her lashes, but the doorbell ringing downstairs, announcing her guest's arrival denies her of the opportunity to do so.

"Coming!" River yells down the hall as she spurts some delicious smelling perfume on her neck before sprinting down the stairs to the front door as gracefully as the heels allow her to.

"River!" Sookie exclaims while busting through the door, almost tackling River to the ground as she embraces her tightly. River clumsily stumbles back, trying to gain her balance while wrapping her arms around the blonde. "Nice place." Sookie says as she lets loose of her tight grip on River.

"Thank you." River smiles. "Although the credit needs to go to Chelsea." River chuckles before averting her gaze back at lover boy with the raven black hair. "You must be Bill." River extends her hand, offering him a polite smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, River. I've heard so much about you." Bill says with a small smile on his face as he grabs hold of her hand to shake. River tries her best not to shiver from his icy grip. Technically he may be dead, but she never expected them to feel this cold.

"All good things, I hope." River smirks before letting go of her grasp on his hand, placing it on the door to keep it open for her guest that won't seem to move from his original spot. "Are you not coming in?" River finally asks, her brows furrowed in confusion.

"Oh shoot!" Sookie exclaims, jumping from the chair she was sitting on. "I totally forgot."

"What's going on here?" River asks confused.

"Bill can't come in without your invitation." Sookie explains subtly.

River arches her brow, totally confused by the whole situation she has herself in the middle of.

"I need your verbal invitation otherwise I'm afraid I won't be able to enter your home." Bill speaks up, his tone ever so polite.

"At all?" River asks curiously. "You won't be able to come in at all unless I say you can?"

"I'm afraid not." Bill says with a small smile.

"Mr. Bill, won't you please come in?" River asks with a faint sophisticated joking tone in her voice.

Just as Bill's right foot passes the threshold, River suddenly closes the door, blocking his entry. The smile suddenly falling from his face.

"What if I change my mind later on?" River inquires, her tone sounding serious.

"I can assure you that you can resend your invitation at any time." Bill explains.

"Good to know…" River mumbles to herself as she pulls the door open for him once again, allowing him to step inside. "Can I get you guys something to drink?" She asks as she closes the door behind him.

"That would be great." Sookie smiles brightly at River from where she's seated, although Bill on the other hand remains silent as he plops himself down next to the cheery blonde.

"I went to the store today to buy you some of that blood….stuff." River trails off. "You want one?"

"That is very kind, thank you." Bill says with a smile on his features.

"Coming right up." River says before making her way to the kitchen to grab Sookie a coke and a trueblood for the vampire.

"So, River." Bill starts. "Sookie tells me that you also have a gift, is that right?" Bill asks as soon as River arrives back in the living room, handing them their drinks.

"Uhm, yeah…I guess." River answers while taking a seat.

"You can hear thoughts as well?" He asks intrigued.

"Sadly I'm not that lucky." River says with a chuckle.

"What is it that you can do?" He asks, obviously feeling very curious.

"She can move things using nothing but her mind! How cool is that?" Sookie exclaims. "Initially I thought she was a witch or something, but then she told me that she can sense emotions. witches can't do that, right?"

"No, she's definitely not a witch." Bill trails off. "I can smell it." He says in a tone almost too low for the girls to hear, but River heard it all too well.

He can smell it?

"Wait.." River speaks up, feeling totally confused. "What do you mean you can smell it?"

"It would be easier to explain it this way." Bill says before placing his trueblood on the coffee table. "May it be human, vampire, witch…" He trails off. "Each creation has a distinctive scent emitting from their blood. I've been unfortunate enough to be in the company of witches, so I can assure you that you do not smell like a witch, but then again, you don't smell like a human either,-" Bills says before averting his gaze to Sookie. "Neither of you do for that matter."

"What do we smell like?" Sookie asks curiously.

"It's hard to explain…" Bill trails off. "The scent from the two of you is stronger than most"

"Do you mean like we _stink_?" River asks as she sniffs herself, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

"No, I can assure you that you do not stink." Bill says with a chuckle. "It's a very sweet smell, if that's any help."

"Well, I've been using this new vanilla body wash…" River offers.

"The smell is definitely not from your choice in personal hygiene brands." Bill says with a laugh.

"But I am a human!" River argues.

"You look human, yes, but then again so do vampires. Albeit the smell that comes from you is something I've never encountered in all my years. Therefor I know you are not human." Bill explains.

"What am I then?" River asks worried, not really mentally prepared to know the answer.

"I do not know exactly." Bill says honestly. "Maybe like Sookie here who's a telepath, you're a telekinetic. It would explain the moving of objects you speak of."

"What about the fact that she can sense emotions?" Sookie asks curiously.

"I honestly don't know…" Bill says while shaking his head.

"This is all way too much…" River says as she falls back in her seat, throwing her head back and sighing out loudly.

"Don't worry, River. We'll figure it all out, I promise." Sookie says with a smile. "But for now we need to get going." She says as she abruptly stands to her feet, throwing her purse over her shoulder. "We have some investigating to do."

 **XXX**

The car ride to Shreveport has been awkward to say the least. River has been sitting silently in the backseat, staring out the window as she's been lost in her own thought about this whole situation. The fact that she met Bill once and he made her question everything about herself so easily- its unnerving. She is a human! She's always been a human! Her parents are human, so what does that make her? Oh, she knows…Human!

She couldn't quite decipher why it was bothering her as much. In all honesty, she always knew that she wasn't normal, but she's just been locking it out of her mind, forcing herself not to think about it.

In the front of the car, Sookie has been noting the entire car ride how Bill has been becoming more tense the closer to Shreveport they got. Bill hasn't been engaging in any of her conversation starters, he just stares out in the open road, gripping the steering wheel abnormally tight.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Sookie asks curiously.

"You don't want to know what I'm thinking." Bill warns.

"I do…" She says simply.

"You both look like vampire bait." Bill says in a low growl.

"What?!" River suddenly forces her torso between the front seat, demanding the couple to include her in the conversation.

"The way you two are dressed…" Bill trails off. "The way you smell…It's probably going to attract every vampire in town." Bill says annoyed. "I promised your grandma I'll take care of you girls." He says as he gazes towards Sookie. "I don't know if I can uphold that promise."

"I wanna go home." River thinks aloud, taking deep breaths to calm her raging nerves.

"Come on, River-" Sookie starts to speak but the paranoid brunette in the back interjects.

"Did you not here him?!" River exclaims. "He said we look like vampire bait! Bait for vampires if you missed what I was trying to say!"

Sookie chuckles. "Everything will be fine, I promise."

The rest of the car ride River sits silently in the back while she tries to calm her nerves. She's sure that vampires would be able to sense fear…

 **XXX**

 _ **AN:**_ _Do you know who we're going to meet next? ;) I really love Chelsea's character. Who's your favorite so far? Don't forget to drop a review and to favorite/follow, they'll get you guys faster updates! I would love to hear what you guys think and where you would like to see this story go._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four.**

 _ **AN:**_ _Please, drop a review. They motivate me to write! A million times thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows! It means so much to me!_

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _Sadly, I don't own TrueBlood, but I do own my OC's._

 **XXX**

" _Fang_ tasia?" River reads the illuminating sigh above the entrance as she climbs out of the car, her brow raised in disbelief. Oh, the irony is too sweet with this one.

"You have to remember that most vampires are very old. Puns used to be the highest form of humor." Bill explains as he makes his way to the girls, grabbing hold of Sookie's hand and leading the blonde towards the entrance of the bar.

"Seriously, Bill…" River growls out annoyed as she practically hopples in her incredibly high heels after the couple to keep up with their pace. "You could've warned me about the whole _'vampire bait'_ thing before we left my place." She tugs at her shirt. "I could've changed!"

"River, you seriously need to calm down." Sookie says before a giggle erupts from her throat.

"Yes, that would be wise since vampires can sense fear on humans." Bill states, trying his darn hardest to suppress the grin that is threating to spread across his face as he watches River's whole demeaner change, sensing her distress.

River's head snaps up and her eyes widen in fear. Just as her lips part and she's about to speak, Sookie interjects.

"Bill, stop freaking her out!" Sookie slaps him on the arm. "I need her here tonight to help me."

"My apologies. As long as you stick to my side, no harm will come to you." Bill promises before the three of them arrive at the front entrance, being met by a woman River considers exceptionally stunning.

"Bill…" The vampire Barbie speaks up, her voice so sultry. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"I'm mainstreaming." Bill answers simply.

"Good for you." She says in a nonchalant tone of voice before diverting her gaze to the girls, looking them over. "Who are the dolls?" She asks curiously.

"Pam, this is Sookie and River, girls this is Pam." Bill introduces the lot while he grabs hold of Sookie's hand, tugging her closer to him in a protective manner.

"It's nice to meet you, Pam." River smiles politely before jutting her arm out, offering her hand to shake, trying her best to seem cool and collected.

Pam on the other hand narrows her eyes at River, wrapping her icy digits around the brunette's wrist with ultra-speed and pulling it towards her nose, inhaling deeply. "My…My…" She trails off. "Don't you smell divine." She says in a purr.

"T-Thank you…" River says nervously before swallowing the lump in her throat, pulling her hand back quickly.

"Bet you taste even better." Pam thinks aloud, her statement causing River to feel her heart pound in her chest at a dangerous level as she remembers what Bill had to say about her sweet smelling blood.

"Pam!" Bill barks out a warning, only for it to fall on deaf ears as she rolls her eyes.

"Can I see some I.D?"

"Oh, Sure! How funny." Sookie trails off as she rummages through her purse, digging out her wallet. "Who would have thought getting carded in a vampire bar." She says as she hands it to the vampire Barbie.

"I can no longer tell human ages. We must be careful we serve no minors in any capacity." Pam explains while studying Sookie's I.D. "Twenty-five huh? How sweet it is." She says in the same nonchalant tone before handing the wallet back to the cheery blonde.

River swiftly pulls her ID from her purse and offers it to Pam who abruptly grabs it from her. "Twenty?" She raises a brow. "You do know you're not old enough to drink, right?" Pam narrows her eyes at River before handing the card back.

"Technically the legal age where I'm from is eighteen." River stupidly educates the vampire. "Don't worry though," She pulls her hands up before herself in surrender. "I don't drink anyway."

"I won't tell if you won't." Pam winks at her flirtatiously before turning on her heel, walking off into the club.

As the three of them make their way through the crowd of people, Sookie speaks up. "This feels a little bit like what a vampire bar would look like if it were a ride at Disney World." She says amazed while looking the place over.

"Don't get too comfortable. It tends to get more authentic as the night wears on." Bill warns before directing the girls towards the bar. "Can I get you ladies something to drink?"

"That'll be nice." Sookie beams while slamming her purse on the bar.

"How's it going, Bill?" The bartender with freakishly long hair asks. His fangs exposed for all to see.

"Very well." Bill smiles.

"I'll say it is." The bartender looks the girls over before licking his lips in a way River finds repulsive. "Is one of them your meal for tonight?"

Meal?

Meal!?

"These are my friends, Sookie and River. Ladies this is Longshaddow." Bill introduces the lot.

"Nice to meet you." Sookie practically yells out while River gives him a small yet fake smile, trying to look as sincere as possible.

Longshaddow on the other hand stares at them intently. "So what will it be?"

"I'll have a gin and tonic." Sookie says with a smile.

Longshaddow nods his head in understanding and diverts his gaze to the brunette, awaiting her order.

"I'll just have some water, please." River smiles at the bartender only for him to gaze at her with narrowed eyes. Clearly he isn't too pleased with her ordering water.

' _Shit, who comes to a bar and orders water?'_ She scolds herself mentally as she feels her heartrate accelerate from the scary gaze he has locked on her.

"I'll have a bottle of O-Neg." Bill speaks up, causing Longshaddow to divert his icy gaze away from River.

"Sookie-" River calls out as she grabs hold of the blonde's arm to get her full attention. "I'm going to go find us a table while you finish up. It's getting pretty crowded in here." She lies feebly, not wanting her to know the real reason is just to get away from this vampire.

Sookie smiles in return and nods her head in agreement.

River turns on her heel, her back turned to the bar as she walks further into the establishment. She passes through the crowds of people and finally spots an empty table for her to wait at. River hops on one of the stools and gazes over towards Sookie's and finds her holding out some pictures for Longshaddow to look at. River adjust herself on the stool more comfortably and looks around the room, sensing each and every emotion around her. Hate. Anger. Lust.

The latter seems to be the strongest aura in the bar.

She studies the people around her and suddenly catches sight of a person sitting on a chair that resembles a throne. She feels a tugging at her heart as she allows her eyes more time to roam over his body, from his long feet to his broad shoulders. Studying the features of his face, taking mental images to think back upon later. Suddenly she finds herself feeling very curious about what his eye color would be. When she thinks about him tonight when she's all alone in bed, what color eyes would be staring back into her own? She slowly trails her gaze from his perfectly sculpted jawline to his eyes, trying to do it as graceful and casual as possible. She just did not expect to lock eyes with the enigma of a man sneering back at her.

River's face flushes with embarrassment and she abruptly gaze down at the floor, biting her lip nervously. Just as she's was about to pray to God to let the ground swallow her whole, Sookie and Bill appears, taking their seats beside her.

"You forgot your water, hun." Sookie says while placing the water bottle in front of the brunette. River doesn't dare to speak, she just thanks Sookie with a small smile. "You okay? You look a little flushed."

Her statement takes River a little by surprise. She quickly peers back at the guy on the platform to find him still staring at her intently. She bites her lip nervously once again and glances at Sookie.

"Oh, uhm… Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a little hot in here, you know?" She lies feebly before abruptly grabbing the water bottle, taking a big gulp from it.

"Better?" Sookie asks unconvinced.

River nods her head and places the bottle on the table while swallowing the last bit of water in her mouth. "Much, thank you." She says with a smile. "So how did it go? Find out anything?" River asks, casually trying to change the subject.

She tries her upmost best to refrain herself from catching just _one last_ glimpse of the mysterious blond, but fails miserably. As if being hypnotized, River gazes towards him, only to find him still glaring at her with the same icy cold intensity that forces her to break eye contact and look down, instinctively playing with the label on her water bottle.

"Nope. He didn't have anything useful to say." Sookie sighs and takes a sip of her gin.

Curiosity got the better of River and she just had to ask. "Hey, Bill..." She trails off. "Who is that?" River asks while indicating with her eyes towards the blond man on the platform, trying to seem as confident and casual as possible.

Bill and Sookie simultaneously follow River's gaze to see who she's referring to. "Oh, you noticed him, did you?" Bill asks, the irritation clear in his voice.

River feels her cheeks heat up and takes a casual sip of her water, trying to act composed. "No, it's not like that. I just-" River tries to justify herself but Bill interjects.

"Everyone does. That's Eric." Bill rolls his eyes. "He's the oldest thing in this bar."

The three of them look over to Eric and notices a random guy bowing before him, kissing his knee. In a blink of an eye, the guy got kicked by the hunk of a man and landed on the opposite side of the bar. River involuntarily cringes as she thinks just how painful that must have been by the looks of it.

"Still think you're in Disney world?" Bill asks as he takes a sip of his true blood before setting it back down on the table. "You girls able to pick up anything?"

Sookie looks the entire bar over one more time before speaking "All anyone is thinking about in here is sex, sex, sex." She says irritably, not even trying to hide her disgust.

"I know what you mean." River says with a giggle since she could feel everyone's lust around her.

"One needn't be telepathic to pick up that." Bill mocks and River can't help the laugh that escapes her lips.

They sit in silence for a few more moments while Sookie tries to find her information by focusing in on what everyone around her is thinking, when Bill suddenly speaks up. "Uh-oh." He says defeated.

"What's wrong?" River asks alarmed, instinctively looking over her shoulder for any oncoming danger.

"Don't say uh-oh!" Sookie blurts out. "Vampires are not supposed to say 'uh-oh'"

"It's Eric. He's scanned us twice now." Bill growls out. "He's going to summon us."

River instantly looks over her shoulder at Eric on the platform with vampire Barbie by his side, both staring in her direction. With a nonchalant facial expression, Eric lifts his hand and signals the trio over to him and Bill lets out a sigh of defeat before standing to his feet.

River looks back at Bill, the fear evident on her face. "He can do that?!" She asks nervously.

"Oh yeah." Bill says simply, his eyes fixed to Eric's. "He can do anything he wants."

River's heart automatically starts to beat faster. She looks over at Sookie who only shrugs her shoulders back at the brunette before she hops off from her stool. Bill juts his hand out for Sookie to take and they step towards the front of the table before looking back at River who remains glued to her seat. "You too, River." Bill trails off. "He is summoning all three of us."

River lets out a sigh of defeat before jumping off her stool and following in the footsteps of her friends towards Eric. She quickly straightens her top and runs her fingers through a section of her hair to tame any flyaway strands as if trying to make herself look more presentable. With Sookie and Bill standing right in front of the blond vampire, River decides to pick a spot right next to Sookie's side. As she nears Eric, she tries her best to hide her fear, even if it's no use. He's a vampire after all. Like Bill explained earlier, they can smell it on a human. She most definitely reeks of it. She swallows hard before averting her gaze to him, locking eyes with him yet again. Icy blue orbs meeting her own black ones. She can't help but revel in his beauty, nor can she seem to look away for too long…

"Bill Compton..." Eric starts to speak, his deep-exotic voice almost causing River to involuntarily squeak. "It has been a while."

"Yes, well I've been -" Bill tries to answer but Eric suddenly interjects.

"Mainstreaming..." He trails off. "I heard." The blond vampire says nonchalantly before averting his gaze to the girls. "I see that it's going well for you." He suddenly fixes his eyes to River's, his stare so intense she can't help but look to the ground.

"Yes of course. Uh, Sorry…" Bill apologizes awkwardly. "Eric, these are my friends-" Bill tries to introduce the girls but Eric interjects yet again.

"Sookie Stackhouse and River Rose Conley" Eric states matter-of-factly.

"How do you know our names?" Sookie suddenly demands.

"I never forget a pretty face." Pam speaks up. "You two are in my vault." She taps her temple with her index finger.

"Great. That's just… great." Sookie says awkwardly before averting her attention to Eric. "It's nice to meet you." She juts her arm out, offering her hand for him to shake but he doesn't.

"Well aren't you sweet." Eric says unexcited, cocking his head to the side.

"Not really" Sookie mumbles.

River stands in awe as she listens to the sass Sookie tosses back at the vampire. Bill nudges Sookie on the shoulder as if to warn her to keep her mouth shut and River feels so sure that Eric might take offense to the disrespect Sookie is portraying towards him, but instead of kicking her across the bar like he did the guy from earlier tonight, he chuckles. Bearing his beautiful teeth and voicing his melodic laugh that River would gladly listen to time and time again.

Eric cocks his head to the side. "Vår lilla zoo börjar växa." He whispers to Pam in some foreign language none of them understand. _**(Our little zoo is starting to grow.)**_

"Jag vet." Pam replies, looking intently at River. _ **(I know.)**_

"Miss Stackhouse," Eric smirks. "I understand you've been asking questions about some of my customers."

"Yes I have." Sookie agrees confidently.

The smirk suddenly vanishes from his face. "If you have anything to ask you should ask it of me." Eric says it more like a demand than suggestion.

"Allrighty..." Sookie trails off before rummaging through her purse, grabbing hold of the pictures and pulling them out. "Do you recognize any of these girls?" Sookie asks as she hands him the pictures.

Eric snatches the pictures from her hand and studies them over. River notices him smirking while looking over Dawn's picture, making approving noises in the process. Weirdly enough, River can't seem to understand why that little act of his is igniting an annoyance of jealousy within her.

"This one offered herself to me." He lazily points at the picture of Maudette. "I found her too pathetic for my attention." He says simply before averting his gaze to Dawn's picture."Now this one however," He licks his lips seductively. "I have tasted." He admits truthfully.

 _'Of course he has.'_ River thinks to herself as the jealousy starts to grow stronger.

"I remember them both." Pam admits. "Never had either of them though. They weren't really my type." Pam says as looks River over, making her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Sookie," River calls out for her attention in a whisper. "I think it's time for us to go." She forces a smile, even though she so desperately wanted to get out of here, as far away from Eric as humanly possible.

Sookie nods her head in agreement before looking back at Eric. "Well, thank you very much. That is all your time I need to take." She says as she grabs the pictures from Eric and shoves them deep in her purse.

"I'm not finished with you yet." Eric says rather forcefully before a small smile sneaks onto his features. "Please." He indicates to the chairs next to his throne. "Sit…"

Sookie looks over her shoulder at Bill before stepping closer to the chair on Eric's right, plopping herself down while Bill takes the one on the left. With no more seats available, River remains standing in her original spot, which she was completely fine with since she didn't want to be closer to Eric than needed be. She casually looks towards Eric who is arrogantly patting his lap, coaxing her to sit.

"I'm fine, thank you." River forces herself to say as she blushes profusely. She steps closer to Sookie and leans in so that Sookie would be able to hear her over the loud music. "I'm going to go get another drink." She lets the cheery blonde know before turning on her heel. "I'll let you guys get to your talking." She smiles shyly at the group as she makes her way off the landing. But before she could even register what had happened, she was situated directly on top of Eric's lap. All she can recall was being mid-step and then feeling hands on her waist. Now here she is, sitting sideways on the Viking's lap with his left hand resting on her kneecap and the right arm snaked around her waist, keeping her in place.

Her heart was pounding in her chest at a dangerous rate. Her stomach was twisting in tight knots and her face completely crimson. She immediately tries to scurry off his of his lap only for him to tighten his grip on her. She tries one more time to make her great escape but to no avail, she won't be getting out of this one. All she is left to do now is to stay completely still, try to calm her nerves and ignore the fact that he smells absolutely freaking delicious.

"Comfy?" Eric asks arrogantly before leaning in closer to River, burying his nose in the crook of her neck and inhaling deeply. Here River thought her face couldn't turn any more crimson, but he sure proved her wrong."Sooo, Bill…" Eric trails off as he exhales deeply. "Are you quite attached to your friend?"

"Sookie is mine!" Bill growls out.

Sookie's eyes travel from Bill to Eric before speaking. "Yes, I am his." She admits proudly.

"How sweet." Eric say sarcastically. "Although I wasn't referring to you, Miss Stackhouse." He looks back at River and tugs a piece of hair behind her ear. "So, Miss Conley-" Eric suddenly grabs hold of her chin with his surprisingly warm fingers before moving her face in his direction, ensuring she'll make eye contact with him. His skin felt nothing like Bill or Pam's and River had to suppress herself from shivering at his touch. "Are you Bill's as well?" He asks as he strokes her knee through her jeans with the thumb of his left hand.

She so desperately wanted to scream her answer. She so desperately wanted to shout NO at the top of her lungs, she wasn't Bill's, but she couldn't get herself to speak, she knew her voice would fail her.

"Yes, she's also mine!" River hears Bill answer and she mentally scolds herself.

"What a pity." Eric says with a forced smile, gradually digging his fingers deeper into her skin albeit the annoyance is clear on his face. "For me." He finishes his thought with a smirk before continuing his affectionate strokes to her knee. "We have catching up to do you and I. It has been too long." Eric trails off and Bill nods his head in understanding.

"We have to get out of here!" Sookie suddenly yells out.

"Sookie," Bill calls out, giving her a warning look since he didn't want the other two vampires to grow suspicious, although Sookie just shrugs of Bill's warning.

"Eric, the cops are coming." She alarms him. "There's gonna be a riot!"

River feels Eric's body stiffen under her, his hand suddenly stills on her knee and he digs his fingers in painfully hard, causing her yelp out. "Tell me you're not undercover cops." He growls out as he stares intently at River who tries her best to pull at his fingers to get his hand off but with no such luck.

"We're not!" River exclaims. Eric on the other hand seems unconvinced. His stare is still fixed on her, as if he's trying to read her mind to find out if she's lying. "I swear." River promises as she looks him straight in the eye, as if she's staring straight into his soul.

"We're not, Eric."Sookie speaks up. "But that guy in the hat is." Sookie points out to a guy in the crowd of people.

He looks to the direction of the cop and River suddenly feels his body relax under her. His painful grip on her knee loosens and he start stroking her affectionately once more. "Even if you're right, we do nothing illegal here."

"There's a vampire named Tarryn in the ladies' room with that man you kicked earlier. She's feeding on him." Sookie rambles on.

"How do you know this." Pam asks with narrowed eyes before the sound of yelling and screaming demands their attention.

"POLICE! POLICE!" River looks at the direction of the yelling and see every person in the bar forming a stampede towards the exit.

Suddenly River's feet are planted on the ground and a warm hand grabs hold of her wrist painfully hard. "Follow me." Eric demands. The group follows him as he makes his way out the of the bar and towards the back exit. He slams the door open and rushes through it, dragging River along with him. Her heel twists in the gravel and she loses her balance, feeling herself fall forward, but thankfully a hand on the front of her neck and another on the waist catches her from plummeting face first into the ground. River gazes up and finds the incredibly tall Eric holding her firmly in place. "Thank you" She breath out while trying to regulate her abnormal breathing.

"Try to be more careful, yeah?" Eric growls out annoyed only for River to furrow her brows at him. He suddenly wraps his long digits around her wrist again and pulls her after him.

"River! Where are you going?" Sookie yells out and Eric abruptly stops dead in his tracks, causing River to bump her forehead into his hard-muscular back.

"I will be taking miss Conley with me and ensure she gets home safely." Eric says forcefully.

"There is no way in hell I will be letting you anywhere near her, Eric! You are no good and a danger to all!" Sookie argues as she marches toward him.

"On the contrary, Miss Stackhouse." Eric trails off with a chuckle. "I think she'd be safest with me."

River slowly pulls her hand from Eric's grip and looks up at the towering man. "I have to go with her." She explains softly, trying her best not to offend him.

"Why is that?" Eric raises an eyebrow at her. "Are you scared I might hurt you?" He asks with a sneer that causes River to swallow hard.

"N-No…" She lies feebly.

Eric looks down at River, his face fathomless. He leans down and River feels his nose press against the crook of her neck. She tries her best to squirm away only for him to grab hold of her waist and keep her locked in place. River feels her heartrate escalating dangerously high. She closes her eyes tightly and bites down on her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood. She waits for his inevitable assault on her neck but instead of biting her, he inhales deeply. As if trying to savor the smell of her. "Whatever you want." Eric breaths out against her neck. As soon as it happened, it was over. Eric moved away from her abruptly. "I enjoyed meeting you Miss Stackhouse, Miss Conley. You will come again." With that, he's gone with a vampire speed.

 **XXX**

 _ **AN:**_ _That's a wrap on chapter 4! I'm not happy with how I wrote the ending of this chapter. There needed to be more, but my brain won't allow me to create anything better this time of night! I'm so sorry I'm taking forever to upload, but one of my new years resolutions is to write more frequently. Happy 2018 guys! I hope you have an amazing year!_

 _ **To the reviewer Ripley…**_

 _I want to keep this short since no one likes AN's but I had to respond to yours since you had a lot of valuable pointers. I honestly don't even realize that I switch from present to past tense that much, like I've said before, by NO means am I a writer. I also don't proof read my work so there will be lots of errors. I think I need a beta that can help me fix errors I don't see and help with some plot. I suck at writing, I only do this for fun because I want to live vicariously through my OC'S._

 _I promise you, and everyone reading this, that I am not racist. I know you didn't insinuate it, but I just want to clarify. River is mostly based on me, she has a lot, if not all- of my traits (apart from the whole telekinetic thing…duh_

 _I personally am from South Africa and I am white, so I'm not trying to avoid non-white characters. Chelsea is based on my best friend / sister who I met online 6 years ago. She lives across the globe from me and that's where I got the idea of Chelsea and River's relationship._

 _There is a section in one of my chapters I was a little wary of adding, the part where River asked Sookie if she expected a person of color just because she heard River was from South Africa. That is just a little inside joke. Mostly when I meet people online and I tell the which country I'm from, they automatically assume I'm black. That's the only reason I added it. Thank you for your review!_

 _I LOOOOVE reading all the reviews to my story! If you guys want to ask me questions about the story, feel free to pm me, or if you want me to respond to your reviews this way, please let me know! If you have any requests of how the story should go, or any ideas I can use… Please share them with me and I'll try to incorporate it._


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